Nepal govt must ensure Constitution, laws are inclusive: US

Nepal government has to ensure that the new constitution and any law that is implemented is "inclusive" and has the broadest possible support in "every part of the country", the Obama Administration said today.
Testifying before a Congressional committee on South Asia, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Nisha Desai Biswal said Nepal's earthquake struck as the country was transitioning from a decade-long insurgency that had crystalised grievances and mistrust among elements of its diverse population.
Nepal promulgated its long-awaited constitution last year, an important milestone in the country's democratic journey, she told members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

"The government's task now is to ensure that the new constitution -- as well as any implementing law -- is inclusive and has the broadest possible support in every part of the country and enshrines and protects basic human rights, including gender equality, equal rights to citizenship and religious freedom," Biswal said.
Like the United States, Nepal is gifted with a wonderfully diverse, tolerant, creative, and entrepreneurial population -- one that can only realise its full potential when everyone is treated equally before the law, she noted.
For Nepal, the State Department has requested USD 109.3 million in financial aid for fiscal 2017.

This includes Secretary of State John Kerry's pledge to help the Nepali people recover from the tragic earthquake that struck in April last year.

The World Bank estimates that reconstruction will take decades and cost US 6.6 billion of which donors have now committed two-thirds of the total amount.
Despite these pledges, there is a huge funding gap for reconstruction efforts, Biswal said, adding that donor commitments only meet reconstruction needs of 10 per cent for housing, 18 per cent for health facilities and 25 per cent for schools.
The United States, she said continues to work closely with Nepal's government to protect and assist the many Tibetan and Bhutanese refugees in the country.

Between 12,000 and 20,000 Tibetan refugees now live in Nepal, and the US Ambassador to the country serves as the Chair of the Tibet Contact Group, Biswal said.
Nepal has also hosted many thousands of Bhutanese refugees for decades and as part of one of the world's most successful refugee resettlement programmes, the United States has resettled over 86,000 Bhutanese since 2008.
"As this programme begins to wind down, we are committed to working with the United Nations and international NGOs to establish a durable solution for the remaining Bhutanese refugees in Nepal," Biswal said.